Recent content by Chanler

Mari was an intense, restless woman haunted by her daughter's fate and perhaps plagued by guilt about "what I could have done." It would not be the first time that intense family differences had erupted in the aftermath of a tragedy.

It is, of course, a complicated call: Joran is aggressive, outspoken, famous, and foreign, so he might attract attacks from other prisoners; but he's also a manipulator, some one who has using his moves at gambling tables, pick-up bars, and soaking the mother of a murder victim. He might be...

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2014/11/03/joran-van-der-sloot-prison-stabbed-natalee-holloway/18405807/ Prison officials are denying it. Given his past history, it's possible that Mr. Van Der Sloot has shed a little blood to get himself transferred to a more advantageous prison. One...

Hi, Liebchenmutti; thanks for a fine post. Yes, the plan was hopelessly faulty. My point was that the crime was intricately planned; methodically, if very inadequately laid out. Of course, Jodi was already suspect number one in capital letters: She was singled out in the 911 call by the friends...

Hi, Geevee. Thanks for your detailed note, but I don't quite understand: What was her plan? She tossed the cameras and the cards into the washer to be destroyed. And it's obvious from the interrogation videos that she doesn't even suspect that their contents might have been recovered. To me...

A few negative Amazon reviews of the new Jodi Arias book appeared to regard Travis as a typical abuser, partly because of the "dirty talk" and their varied sexual activities. This stereotypical thinking is dangerous because it paints the brutally slaughtered victim as, in a sense, the real...

Hi, Eagle5516; thanks for such a well-stated post. I think that she might have walked out on her own, but not with any long-range plan. Given the craziness of the evening and night, it wouldn't surprise me if she left the apartment to clear her head or perhaps find a pot connection Every time...

Just a few thoughts. My apologies if I'm repeating other posts I haven't yet read: 1. Except for her hair-cutting, Jodi did almost nothing for public good during her four years of incarceration. She used the excuse of preparing her defense, but that surely didn't occupy all her time. She did...

I can imagine that the defense lawyers and their potential character witnesses realized that it was a losing battle: Jodi didn't seem to have many long-term friends who could offer very meaningful accolades. Even if one or two of them would agree to testify, the absence of other, more impressive...

Perhaps Ms. Arias will say that before the homicide, her life was somewhat of a mess: A Pre-Paid Legal career that wasn't going anywhere; a professional photography and art career that had shown no success; and a boyfriend who had rejected her. Now, she can say, she has turned everything around...

Hi, SwampMama. I too would like to thank our moderators for their hard work on this very protracted, arduous case. I certainly don't dispute the ban here of discussion of individuals who have not been charged. That said, I do think that as the judge herself seemed to indicate, Martinez's...

Jodi's lawyers are in a difficult, even impossible position. Remember: She originally wanted to defend herself; now they have reached a stage when everything is clearly lost, so she feels justified to be the loose cannon. There is no telling what she will say when she speaks. I suspect that she...

The most remarkable thing about the interviews aired and re-aired on 20/20 last night was Jodi's remarkable, sometimes astonishing poise. She was engaged, relaxed, and obvious self-confident. The ease with which she lied and constructed her stories put several lead actors and actresses I can...

Hi, ADoyle. Jodi's fears of spending her life in one place seem infinitely smaller when one imagines what being in one place on Death Row for an extended length of time. It shows how incredibly short-sighted she is.

Hi, Rosemary Pierce. Different states do it differently. If the jury is no longer a decision-maker, that's how it's done, I think.